Academy of Light Proposal
In 1997 Sunderland A.F.C. underwent a rebirth. In that year the club moved to a new home (the Stadium of Light) and club owner Bob Murray and chairman John Fickling put forward proposals for a new world-class academy that would hopefully secure Sunderland's long-term future.
The Academy was to be built on acquired land opposite Sunderland's current training ground, on disused farmland. From the outset, the proposals were beset with problems. Sunderland's training ground was on the green belt between Sunderland and South Shields. Planning permission for building on the green belt is only granted in exceptional circumstances.
Sunderland's original plans were ambitious - amongst them, the club planned to build an indoor training centre and hostel. Local opposition was fierce, claiming that an area of rural wildlife would be destroyed and the green belt would be weakened, causing a merging of Sunderland and South Tyneside. Sunderland were forced to withdrawn the submission and investigate alternative sites in the region.
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